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Current Progressive Dairy digital edition

1. Foundation Watch: Donations educate consumers about today’s dairy industry: (Organizations); See a need: 2016 consumer trust research by the Center for Food Integrity states that a majority of consumers know little about dairy farming, yet they have a very strong desire to learn more about how ...; Created on 19 July 2017
2. Managing expenditures in tight times: Lessons from the Northeast: (Industry News); Northeastern U.S. dairy producers have shown remarkable resilience in the face of falling revenues, according to the annual Northeast Dairy Farm Summary. However, sharply declining asset-to-liability ratios ...; Created on 19 July 2017
3. What do my behaviors communicate in tough times?: (Management); Let’s think about what is happening today with dairy farm business owners – you: Milk prices refuse to rebound despite continuing predictions that higher prices are ahead. Many parts of the country ...; Created on 19 July 2017
4. Supermarkets and dairy farmers: Both need each other right now: (Management); Two recent articles about supermarkets caught my attention. The first was from the USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS). ERS reports retail food prices in 2016 were 1.3 percent lower than the previous ...; Created on 19 July 2017
5. 6 tips for maximizing the milking parlor: (Management); When I’m looking to generate more income for a dairy, the milking parlor is one of the first places I look to create cash flow. More often than not, I find facilities, cows and employees are under-utilized, ...; Created on 19 July 2017
6. Using data to manage beyond your own cow senses: (Management); Good management requires good observational powers. You’ve got to see and hear, and sometimes even feel, taste and smell, to ascertain whether or not things are going as planned. Technology makes it possible ...; Created on 19 July 2017
7. Hold the line: Make better decisions in stressful situations: (Management); During stressful times, it’s easy to let emotions overtake rational thinking – which can lead to poor decision-making. Throughout my nearly 25-year career, I’ve seen U.S. dairy producers feel the stress ...; Created on 19 July 2017
8. Four tips for holding off heat stress: (Herd Health); I’m not sure who sent the stray voltage to the groundhog in February, but I think he was a little off-target this year. While spring yielded to summer early in the South, Old Man Winter clung to some parts ...; Created on 19 July 2017
9. Are your cows as cool as you think they are?: (Herd Health); Heat stress and the problems associated with it can be costly to your dairy operation. Not only are there losses in milk production, but studies are also linking heat stress to lower reproduction rates, ...; Created on 19 July 2017
10. Heat stress is detrimental to cows; protected B vitamins can help: (Herd Health); Dairy cows are very susceptible to heat stress and will adapt by reducing their milk production. Only half of that milk reduction is explained by a lower dry matter intake; other metabolic changes are ...; Created on 19 July 2017
11. Compost-bedded pack barns: Balance management and moisture: (Herd Health); Compost-bedded pack barns are an alternative to traditional freestall barns, typically offering additional space for roaming and lying down for lactating, dry and special-needs cows. “We have been ...; Created on 18 July 2017
12. Consider automated options to improve cow comfort and health: (Herd Health); Today’s technology is offering ways to enhance cow comfort using labor-saving robots, automated equipment and computerized health monitoring systems. With such a wide array of options available, selecting ...; Created on 18 July 2017
13. Brush up on cow brush maintenance: (Barns & Equipment); We all need a good back scratch every once in a while, and cows are no different. In their natural environment, cows will rub up against trees and bushes. Around the farm, they will use other objects like ...; Created on 18 July 2017
14. Neck rail placement: It’s not one-size-fits-all: (Barns & Equipment); Do you remember the last time you banged your head on something? Think of a time when you really gave it a whack. What was it? Where were you? Will you be darn sure you don’t do it again next time? ...; Created on 18 July 2017
15. 5 pitfalls that compromise cow comfort: (Herd Health); Producers should consider maternity care, dry cow health, overstocking and social stressors when looking for ways to improve cow comfort. “If we take care of our cows, they’ll take care of us,” Dr. ...; Created on 18 July 2017
16. Barn design: How to calculate the size of the treatment or sort pens in robot barns: (Barns & Equipment); With thousands of robots in place on North American dairies, barn layouts and designs are becoming more diverse. The key to robot success is for the producer to be passionate about the barn layout and ...; Created on 18 July 2017
17. Shiloh Dairy takes control of corkscrew claws: (Herd Health); For several years, Shiloh Dairy in Brillion, Wisconsin, was troubled by an epidemic of twisted and turned-up toes on cows’ and heifers’ front feet, but with the help of a committed consultant, they have ...; Created on 18 July 2017
18. Evaluating topical treatments for digital dermatitis: Add a dose of skepticism: (Herd Health); Digital dermatitis (DD), known as hairy heel warts, strawberry foot rot, raspberry heel, Mortellaro’s disease and foot warts, has become the most common foot lesion on many dairy herds throughout North ...; Created on 18 July 2017
19. Don’t just aim to prevent lameness; seek to cure it: (Herd Health); I’m sure you’ve run into lameness challenges in the past – or perhaps you’re currently facing some challenges? Or maybe they’re looming around the corner but you’re not aware of them yet. Let’s take ...; Created on 18 July 2017
20. Say ‘yes’ to less copper: (Herd Health); Digital dermatitis (DD) is often referred to as “mastitis of the hoof.” When it comes to milk production, hoof care can be just as important as udder care. A lame cow won’t be able to stand on its feet, ...; Created on 18 July 2017
21. Get ahead of lame cows by finding the ‘3’s’: (Herd Health); Finding cows with a locomotion score of “3” could be the magic number that transforms lameness levels within a dairy herd, according to Neil Andrew, Northeast account manager with Zinpro Corporation. During ...; Created on 18 July 2017
22. 5 Things I can't do without: Ben Sorrell, hoof trimmer: (Herd Health); Ben Sorrell lives in Galena, Missouri, traveling across the state and into northwest Arkansas and northeast Oklahoma as a professional hoof trimmer. He started Sorrell Hoof Trimming 26 years ago and ...; Created on 18 July 2017
23. Hoof trimmers gather to listen and learn: (Herd Health); Over 80 hoof-trimming enthusiasts met in Tomah, Wisconsin, to network and learn more about their trade at a winter getaway on Feb. 18-19. The gathering was coordinated by trimmers Skip Blake from Wisconsin ...; Created on 18 July 2017
24. Just dropping by ... A walk through a life: (Yevet Tenney); Today, I attended the graveside services of my uncle. It was a sweet service set in the old country cemetery of Heber, Arizona. The marble and sandstone grave markers are nestled under towering pines and ...; Created on 18 July 2017
25. Mechanics Corner: Choosing the correct hay gathering tool: (Barns & Equipment); Across the country, millions of acres of hay are baled or chopped every year. Nearly all of this hay needs to be gathered into a windrow to allow it to be picked up for harvest. There are many different ...; Created on 18 July 2017
26. Cooling efficiency: The key to summer profitability: (Herd Health); Decisions on the dairy should be based on increasing efficiency to improve the bottom line. As you weigh the costs and benefits of cooling your cows, the numbers quickly add up: Cooling wins every time. ...; Created on 18 July 2017
27. Gain control of digital dermatitis: (Herd Health); Acknowledged as a leading cause of lameness in the dairy industry, digital dermatitis (DD) is a widespread problem present on the majority of U.S. dairies. Also known as hairy heel warts, this costly and ...; Created on 18 July 2017
28. Consider these options when choosing curtains: (Barns & Equipment); What is one of the first things you notice as you drive by a dairy farm? Some might say the smell, but for even those outside of the industry, one of the first things you notice are the barns. They are ...; Created on 17 July 2017
29. The Milk House: The afternoon crowd: (Ryan Dennis); We’re lying on the couch, watching Netflix. My girlfriend rests her hand on my belly. I shift on my side so her hand slides off. She puts her hand back on my stomach. I browse through the movies, reading ...; Created on 17 July 2017
30. HERd Management: Every month should be June Dairy Month: (Guest Blog); June Dairy Month might be over, but that doesn’t mean we are off the hook when it comes to promoting the industry. Sharing our farm story and connecting with consumers is something we should be doing every ...; Created on 17 July 2017
31. The Manure Spreader: Family values: (Tim Moffett); I met my new neighbor this last week. He just bought the old place down the road and moved here from a big city. He said, “I wanted to move to rural America because you just can’t put a price on family ...; Created on 17 July 2017
32. Tetracycline testing slated to run for 18 months: (Herd Health); Dairy regulators recently launched a new pilot program to watch for tetracycline traces in milk on July 1. The new monitoring program will test milk for tetracycline antibiotics such as oxytetracycline, ...; Created on 22 June 2017
33. Cow Comfort Conference panelists share goals, considerations for keeping comfort key: (Barns & Equipment); What are the most important aspects to keeping cows comfortable? How can dairy farmers realistically improve cow comfort? Why is comfort such a focus today? A panel of experts addressed these questions ...; Created on 16 May 2017
34. Repurpose ideas for old dairy equipment and how to use them to tell your dairy story: (Guest Blog); Technology, among other things, has changed the dairy landscape, and as dairy numbers continue to decline and farm sizes increase, it’s important to tell the story of how we progressed to where we are ...; Created on 16 March 2017
35. Why cows go lame and what to do about it: (Herd Health); Extra days open, premature culling, lost milk production and even death are some of the costly consequences of lameness on a dairy, but there are ways producers can cut down on losses. “Lameness is ...; Created on 20 December 2016
36. Five ways to save water while cooling cows: (Barns & Equipment); Water is one of the most important resources on a dairy farm, not only because it is essential for cow consumption, but also because it is heavily used to wash, clean and cool the dairy facility. In ...; Created on 03 August 2016